O.C. bird die-off raising concerns among experts

Debbie McGuire, left, wildlife director at the Wetlands & Wildlife Care Center in Huntington Beach, takes a blood sample from an American wigeon as it is held by Evan Antin, a fourth-year veterinary student at Colorado State University, Tuesday afternoon. The duck is one of many sick or dead birds found in recent weeks at the Village Pond Park in Lake Forest. MARK RIGHTMIRE, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

Shelmarie Main and Chloe Mallone were heartbroken when they saw a blue-beaked American wigeon collapsed on a pond drainage grate. His head hung down, barely keeping his beak out of the water, and his wings were splayed to the side.

The mother-daughter duo take walks along Village Pond Park most days to admire wildlife. On that day, two kids poking at something on the ground caught their attention. As they got closer, they realized it was a dying wigeon. His head was twisted and he barely moved. His instinct to flee seemed gone. When they touched him, he shuddered with his last breath. Just a foot away, a female mallard was struggling. Slightly more alert, the bird tried to flee but could not.

Main and Mallone moved the dying animals to safety. As they did, they discovered two more dead ducks. They called the county's animal control for help.

"It was horrible, there were so many," said Mallone, 20, who said she's been a bird geek since age 9. "To see one once in a while is normal but all of these at once, it was heartbreaking. At first I thought someone had been poisoning them."

In the last two weeks nearly three dozen dead and dying water fowl have been found in several areas across Orange County, including Lake Forest and Santa Ana. More than a dozen were found at the Village Pond in Lake Forest. At least 16 dead and dying ducks have been found at Carl Thornton Park near South Coast Plaza in Santa Ana. Most have been migratory birds such as the American wigeon, American coots and some mallards.

Wildlife experts worry what a rapidly spreading disease could mean for hundreds of thousands of migratory birds that use the Pacific flyway as a migration course between northern breeding grounds and southern winter spots. In September, more than 2,000 birds died in Oregon following a botulism outbreak.

In the case of the dying fowl in Orange County, experts are conducting tests trying to figure out what happened. Possible culprits include botulism or other toxin or an avian virus. The condition is especially troublesome to bird experts because it could devastate tens of thousands of migratory bird communities and even impact resident fowl at local lakes.

Debbie McGuire, director of the Wetlands & Wildlife Care Center in Huntington Beach, has begun conducting necropsies on some of the dead birds. She and veterinarians there have also taken blood-serum samples. McGuire said while it's not the time of year botulism is usually seen, a recent warm spell could have helped the neurotoxin spread and ducks could have eaten affected plants. What she's more concerned about is a virus or toxin that the migrating birds may have picked up along their route.

"Certain viruses could spread quickly," she said. "With the different species coming in, we've got some that are federally and state protected. Loosing a few individuals in their population could affect their survival as a species."

The Huntington Beach center has taken in cadavers and is treating an American wigeon and American coot, both which are barely clinging to life. The birds show extreme weakness, an inability to stand and to hold up their heads. They are vomiting and have diarrhea and are dehydrated. Recent necropsies on a wigeon showed that whatever killed the bird came on suddenly, McGuire said.

"It was not a chronic condition that killed him," she said. "The bird died quickly with an acute onset – which is likely a toxin."

McGuire said the two live birds were too weak for blood to be taken from them. If they also die, the blood will be taken then for testing,

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Debbie McGuire, left, wildlife director at the Wetlands & Wildlife Care Center in Huntington Beach, takes a blood sample from an American wigeon as it is held by Evan Antin, a fourth-year veterinary student at Colorado State University, Tuesday afternoon. The duck is one of many sick or dead birds found in recent weeks at the Village Pond Park in Lake Forest. MARK RIGHTMIRE, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Debbie McGuire, left, wildlife director at the Wetlands & Wildlife Care Center in Huntington Beach, and Evan Antin, a fourth-year veterinary student at Colorado State University, take a blood sample Tuesday from an American wigeon found at the Village Pond Park in Lake Forest. A number of sick and dead birds have been found in recent weeks at the park. MARK RIGHTMIRE, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Kristi Jolliffee, left, of Laguna Niguel and Terry Whatley of Lake Forest check on a Muscovy duck at the Village Pond Park in Lake Forest, where sick and dead waterfowl have been found in recent weeks. MARK RIGHTMIRE, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Kristi Jolliffee of Laguna Niguel throws lettuce to ducks and geese at the Village Pond Park in Lake Forest on Tuesday morning. In recent weeks sick and dead waterfowl have been found at the park. MARK RIGHTMIRE, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
While standing in Village Pond Park in Lake Forest, Chloe Mallone, left, and her mother, Shelmarie Main, of Foothill Ranch talk with Terry Whatley of Lake Forest about the sick and dead waterfowl they have found. MARK RIGHTMIRE, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Domestic geese make their way along the sidewalk at the Village Pond Park in Lake Forest on Tuesday morning. Sick and dead waterfowl have been found in recent weeks at the park. MARK RIGHTMIRE, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Kristi Jolliffee of Laguna Niguel feeds ducks and geese at the Village Pond Park in Lake Forest on Tuesday morning. In recent weeks sick and dead waterfowl have been found at the park. MARK RIGHTMIRE, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Canada geese stand at the edge of the water at the Village Pond Park in Lake Forest on Tuesday morning. Sick and dead waterfowl have been found in recent weeks at the park. MARK RIGHTMIRE, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Terry Whatley of Lake Forest takes a few photos at the Village Pond Park in Lake Forest on Tuesday morning. In recent weeks Whatley and others have found sick and dead waterfowl at the park. MARK RIGHTMIRE, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Canada geese make their way along the sidewalk at the Village Pond Park in Lake Forest on Tuesday morning. Sick and dead waterfowl have been found in recent weeks at the park. MARK RIGHTMIRE, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Ducks and geese gather for food left for them at the Village Pond Park in Lake Forest on Tuesday morning. In recent weeks, sick and dead waterfowl have been found at the park. MARK RIGHTMIRE, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Terry Whatley of Lake Forest talks about the sick and dead waterfowl that she and others have been found at the Village Pond Park in Lake Forest in recent weeks. MARK RIGHTMIRE, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
A Canada goose feeds with American coots at the Village Pond Park in Lake Forest on Tuesday morning. Sick and dead waterfowl have been found in recent weeks at the park. MARK RIGHTMIRE, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER
Sick and dead waterfowl have been found in recent weeks at the Village Pond Park in Lake Forest. MARK RIGHTMIRE, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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